Two men were charged Thursday with murder in connection with the shooting death of a doctor after he left his medical practice in Woodland Hills in what authorities believe may be a murder for hire, while a woman who allegedly drove the gunman from the scene was charged with being an accessory after the fact.
Evan Hardman, 41, and Sarallah Jawed, 26, are each charged with murder in connection with the Aug. 23 slaying of 61-year-old Dr. Hamid Mirshojae, who was pronounced dead after being found in a parking lot in the 5900 block of Topanga Canyon Boulevard, near Warner Center Park.
The two are each facing a special-circumstance allegation of murder for financial gain.
Hardman is also facing a special-circumstance allegation of murder by means of lying in wait, along with allegations that he personally and intentionally discharged a firearm and that he has one or more prior serious or violent felony convictions, according to court records.
Hardman and Jawed are also charged with one count each of assault with a deadly weapon in connection with an alleged crime May 3.
Hardman, identified as a resident of Tomball, Texas, was arrested Tuesday in the Greater Houston area by deputies from the Harris County Sheriff’s Department, according to Los Angeles police. He remains in custody there.
Jawed — whose hometown was not immediately available — was arrested Wednesday by the Los Angeles Police Department’s fugitive unit and remains behind bars without bail, according to jail records. He is set to be arraigned Friday in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.
A third defendant, Ashley Rose Sweeting, 40, of Reseda, was arrested Tuesday and pleaded not guilty Thursday to one count of being an accessory after the fact, along with an allegation that she has one or more prior serious or violent felony convictions.
Deputy District Attorney Benjamin Schwartz told Superior Court Judge Susan J. De Witt that Sweeting allegedly drove the shooter to and from the crime scene in a “situation that appeared to be a murder for hire.” She has a string of criminal convictions for offenses including first-degree burglary and grand theft and is on diversion in a carjacking case, the prosecutor said.
Sweeting was ordered to remain jailed on $1 million bail. She is due back in court Dec. 24.
Meanwhile, LAPD investigators were seen Thursday raiding a sprawling mansion in the 5500 block of Newcastle Lane in a Calabasas gated community. According to various media reports, the home is owned or tied to Mirshojae’s ex-wife, Ahang Zarrin Kelk. Police have not commented on the investigation, and it was unclear if anyone was detained or arrested at the scene.